Auditions and Interviews in France for all of Europe

We have a team from Berklee currently doing auditions and interviews (A&I) in Paris at the moment. A quick look at the schedule shows that over three days, students from over 20 countries will participate in this program. Our commitment to attracting outstanding artists and creators from around the world continues and we are thrilled, not only by the diversity of the students who come to A&I, but also by the top level commitment and ability they demonstrate. Some of the countries represented include:

France, Spain, Germany, Holland, Latvia, Poland, Israel, Jordan, Turkey, Lebanon, Sweden, Finland, Norway, Romania, Hungary, Switzerland, Italy, Slovakia, Portugal, Reunion Island...and more.

As we continue to strive towards our vision for 2015 below, our week in Paris tells us that we're on the right track.

From the Berklee website:

"Berklee will be the world's leading institute of contemporary music. Attracting diverse and talented students passionate about careers in music, we will offer a relevant and distinctive curriculum in music and liberal arts. We will engage an unparalleled faculty of inspiring educators and cutting-edge industry professionals, provide state-of-the-art facilities for learning and living, and produce tomorrow's leaders of the global music community"

Berklee's Annual High School Jazz Festival March 13, 2010

Our annual jazz festival, the largest of its kind in the United States is scheduled for Saturday, March 13, 2010. You can find out more here at the homepage for the event.

New York City Berklee Auditions January 23 - 26, 2010

We'll have our annual 4 days of auditions in NYC this month (January 23 - 26) and lots of other places in the months ahead! Details on the audition process can be found here: http://www.berklee.edu/admissions/general/audition_dates.html

Berklee In Tel Aviv for A&I

Reposted from Berklee-Blogs:

After a 4-hour layover in Frankfurt, we arrived safely in Tel Aviv and made our way to the Melody Hotel. This is part of a larger strategicplan to stay only in hotels that have names associated with music (;JK). We just know there is a mixolydian or phrygian hotel out there somewhere. I am traveling with Greg Badolato VP International Programs, David Mash VP Technology Resources(who is accompanied by his wife Erica) and Myra Hindus VP Cultural Diversity. This is the first stop in a 3 city tour that will include Ramallah and Amman. Our hosts arranged a welcome dinner on Sunday night. It is now Monday morning and we will have our first meeting with the Rimon administration this morning.

It is always a wonderful experience to visit our friends in Tel Aviv. We are certain to meet students that are performing at the highest level and we will give a presentation later today to discuss preparing for Berklee’s audition and interview. Our partners at Rimon shared with us the surge in students that want to pursue songwriting as their major and we look forward to hearing what they have to offer.

Damien Bracken,
Dean of Admissions

Berklee College of Music Auditions in Istanbul, Turkey

For the first time ever, we recently brought an audition team to Istanbul, Turkey.

Here's the link to an interview with Emir Cermen, one of our students who was instrumental in bringing Berklee to Turkey. By all accounts, this was a great experience for everyone. We also have coverage at Berklee-Blogs.

Our commitment to global outreach is embedded in all that we do. Our next initiatives will include India and China - stay tuned!

Berklee College of Music - Educating Creative People

A recent video that includes President Roger Brown and Vice President for Student Affairs, Larry Bethune:

The Admissions Challenge

Within the space of just these past few weeks, Berklee's Office of Admissions has bid a fond farewell ("and don't forget to stay in touch"!) to the largest graduating class in the college's history, admitted one of the largest and most gifted entering classes for the summer and fall semesters in the college's history, and engaged in an intensive two-day retreat to examine both our long-term future and the steps we can take in this upcoming year to take our operation to the next level - higher - faster - louder,  as we say here;-)  And the theme that resonates for us again and again is...humility.  Berklee's Office of Admissions, and indeed all of our administrative colleagues at the college, bare an awesome responsibility.  One that we are most proud to bare, and one that brings pause again and again each year as we select our entering class and almost in the same breath watch the entering class from four years prior cross the stage to Hi-5 the likes of David Bowie, Anita Baker, Sting, Melissa Etheridge, Smokey Robinson, Gloria Estefan, Wayne Shorter, The Edge and a litany of other celebrities who are thrilled to stand there and shake hands with over 800 Berklee graduates.  Don't they have better things to do?  What do they see?  Why are they there?

For those of us involved in recruiting our class each year, the answer to the question is blatantly obvious.  They know the value of networking in the music industry, and it is a thrill for them to meet, at this seminal point in our graduate's lives, with the future leaders of the industry.  We are all familiar with the "six degrees from Kevin Bacon" theory.  In the music industry, you may not even get to step three before Berklee comes into the picture.  Fact, not fiction.

So, each year our challenge is great and our mission is clear.  Find them.  Bring them.  Nurture them.  Graduate them.  Because the "them" we find, bring, nurture, and graduate will make all the difference.  Both today at Berklee and tomorrow in the future industry they will create.

Damien Bracken

Director of Admissions